Knight (17-3 MMA, 4-2 UFC) had was coming off a TKO win of his own, over Chas Skelly at UFC 211, when Lamas (18-5 MMA, 9-3 UFC) put a brutal first-round end to their UFC 214 featherweight scrap on Saturday. The loss snapped a four-fight winning streak for Knight, who had in ex-title-challenger Lamas the possibility of a huge career step up.

The abrupt halt in momentum could have been a tough blow for the 25-year-old up-and-comer, but with the help of some perspective offered by his opponent’s dad, he seems to be taking it quite well.

“I feel fine,” Knight told MMAjunkie. “Something that helped me out a whole lot: I talked to Ricardo Lamas’ dad after the fight. His dad, he said, ‘Man, this loss would have been catastrophic for Ricardo. It would have put him way back on his career. Probably pushed him more toward retirement.’

“For me, this loss is nothing. I lost to the No. 3 guy in the world (in the UFC rankings). I’m No. 15. And I’m just now getting started. He’s close to the end of his run. And I’m going to bounce back so much stronger, man.”

The preliminary-card scrap aired on FXX from Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. Lamas, who’d most recently scored a submission win over grappling specialist Charles Oliveira at UFC Fight Night 98, is now two finish wins removed from a decision loss to current 145-pound titleholder Max Holloway.

It probably helps his spirits that, when he spoke to MMAjunkie on Tuesday, Knight had just watched a friend and teammate Brandon Davis score not only a Dana White’s Contender Series 4 win over Austin Arnett, but looked impressive enough in three-round slugfest to earn himself a UFC contract.

“That’s Mississippi for you,” Knight said. “That’s our kind of fun. The guys from Mississippi, we’ve been throwing down like that our whole lives. That’s the only way we know how to do it.

“Now we’ve got three guys in the UFC. Mississippi – they aren’t know for UFC fighters. But give us five years; that’s all I’ve got to say.”

Other than that, Knight can also find solace on his own glass-half-full approach when it comes to setbacks. In his entire professional career, Knight has lost only three times – and those, he said, contributed more to his growth than the 20 wins on his record.

“If you don’t take nothing away from it, then yeah, you’re losing,” Knight said. “But it’s just a speed bump on the way to where I’m going. And I promise you, you’ll see me back better than ever.

“I won’t ever leave this sport until I’m something people are going to talk about for years and years. And make sure that I go down into that (UFC) Hall of Fame.”